Thin Bezel LCD V Rear Projection LED.Indd
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WHITEPAPER Rear ProjecƟ on DLP™ Cubes with LED Light Source vs. Slim-Bezel LCD in Control Rooms By Mitsubishi Electric US Visual & Imaging Systems Division and Mitsubishi Electric Sales Canada 888-activu-1 www.activu.com WHITEPAPER The primary purpose of display systems in command and control applications is to provide domain experts (operators) with a large, clear, high-resolution common operating picture for critical real-time situational awareness. This allows them to simultaneously monitor information from various sources and assets (application data and graphics, vehicles, personnel, power, environment, etc.) and provides them with the appropriate tools for intelligent decision-making in response to operational emergency situations. The display wall permits sharing of real-time critical information and operational effi ciencies with stakeholders. When selecting the technology for a specifi c application, emphasis should be placed on the following: • Total cost of ownership with a potential for high return on-investment (ROI) • Smallest seams (screen-to-screen gap) to provide a visually seamless and high quality image • The need for true 24x7 operation • High reliability and minimum downtime with reduction in points of failure • Long-life expectancy of the system with ability to upgrade to future technologies The two most commonly deployed control room technologies today are: • Thin bezel LCD display wall systems • Rear-projection DLP display wall systems with long-life LED light source This document compares the technologies and highlights pros and cons of each to help customers make an informed choice for their investment in display technology. Thin-Bezel LCD About the Technology Liquid crystal display (LCD) is a digital display technology that produces images on a surface by shining light through liquid crystals and colored fi lters. The term “liquid crystal” describes a substance in a state between liquid and solid but which exhibits the properties of both. Molecules in liquid crystals tend to arrange themselves until they all point in the same specifi c direction. This arrangement of molecules allows the medium to fl ow as a liquid. Depending on the temperature and particular nature of a substance, liquid crystals can exist in one of several distinct phases. Liquid crystals in a nematic phase, in which there is no spatial ordering of the molecules, for example, are used in LCD technology. A particular sort of nematic liquid crystal called twisted nematic (TN) is naturally twisted. Applying an electric current to these liquids will untwist them to varying degrees, depending on the current’s voltage. LCDs use these liquid crystals because they react predictably to electric current in such a way as to control the passage of light.1 In a color LCD panel, each pixel is made up of three liquid crystals and each of these cells is fronted by a red, green or blue fi lter. Light passing through the fi ltered cells creates colors seen on the LCD. 888-activu-1 1 www.activu.com WHITEPAPER Occasionally, the mechanism that sends the electrical current to one or more pixels fails; in those instances, the bad pixel is dark. As light (energy) passes through the multi-layered LCD panel, the heat generated can cause the panel to heat or burn unless properly cooled. This is often expressed as panel degradation due to heat and is excluded by panel manufacturers in LCD warranties. Liquid crystals have a naturally relaxed state. When a voltage is applied, the crystals rearrange themselves to block certain light waves. If left with the same voltage for an extended period of time (e.g. borders of camera images displayed on LCD screens, static portions of image, etc.), the liquid crystals can remain in one position, which can throw off the requested color, causing the image to look like the traditional “burn-in” on plasma displays. In fact, the root cause of LCD image persistence is the same as phosphor burn-in on CRTs: non-uniform usage of the display’ s pixels. This could be due to several factors, including 1) accumulation of ionic impurities inside the LCD, 2) electric charge building up near the electrodes, 3) parasitic capacitance, or 4) a DC voltage component that occurs unavoidably in some display pixels owing to anisotropy (direction dependence) in the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal. Image persistence, while usually temporary, can also become permanent. Consequently, all major LCD manufacturers exclude image persistence from their warranties. Allowing the liquid crystals to return to their relaxed state can usually reverse image persistence. In other words, turning off an LCD display for several hours or days could relax the crystals and reduce / eliminate the risk of image retention. The use of a screensaver that has a constantly changing image can also help. Another approach is to create a solid white image and displaying the image as a screen saver covering the entire display area for an extended period of time. In the event of bad pixels, panel degradation and image persistence (all three excluded from LCD manufacturers’ warranties), the only remedy is to replace the faulty LCD panel, because repair of LCD panels is cost prohibitive. These panels must be carefully disposed when they fail or reach end of life. Due to ever-changing advancement and development of LCD technology, unless suffi cient spare panels are maintained by the customer for the project, it is highly unlikely to fi nd a matching replacement panel in a relatively short time and over the anticipated lifetime of the display wall array. Thin-bezel LCDs were introduced in 2010 and have rapidly evolved. There are currently two sizes available for control room applications: 46″ and 55″ diagonal. Application Display wall systems using thin-bezel LCDs have been increasingly used in applications where space and budget are limited and the system is not used in true 24x7 operations – especially with static data or graphics displayed for extended periods of time. Organizations have justifi ed the use of thin-bezel LCD technology due to: • The perceived lower cost of the hardware compared to the procurement costs of a DLP display wall system • The savings of real estate in the control room Thin-bezel LCDs possess a signifi cant screen-to-screen gap (as much as 5.7mm), which can affect operations and content. While it may be satisfactory in a security operations center with numerous camera images arranged so that the seams do not affect 888-activu-1 2 www.activu.com WHITEPAPER the image, when a specifi c camera image is expanded over multiple panels, the resulting image can be disturbing as well as in SCADA or GIS applications. It is also important to note that LCD technology is not recommended or warranted by the manufacturers for use in 24/7 applications, especially with static images or static portions of an image, such as borders of security camera images. Ideally, LCD panels are used from dawn to dusk (about 12 hours per day). Some thin-bezel LCDs may also be used for as long as 20 hours per day without signifi cant effect on image quality. Pros Cons • Low initial cost of • If wall mounted, the supporting wall must be fortifi ed to support the weight of deployment the display wall. If not wall mounted, the supporting structure takes up more • Small footprint space in the control room and must be designed not to tip. • Potential for “dead″ pixels. Not covered by manufacturers’ warranties. • Potential for accelerated panel degradation when used continuously for extended operations. Not covered by manufacturers’ warranties. • Potential for image retention with static images or portions of image. Not covered by manufacturers’ warranties. • Large seams / screen-to-screen gaps. Usually 5.7 mm and can be very distracting during operations • Shorter lifespan (less than 50,000 hours / 5.6 years). Lifespan is even shorter when used in continuous operation. • Higher power consumption and greater heat dissipation increases ongoing operational costs. • Unreliable color calibration. • Cannot be repaired in the fi eld, failed panels must be replaced. • New model released every 2 to 3 years. This often makes it diffi cult to fi nd a replacement panel soon after installation is completed. Rear-Projection DLP-LED Cubes (DLP Cubes with Long-Life LED Light Source) About the Technology Rear projection is a display technology that produces images on a screen surface via a projector, more commonly referred to as a light engine. There are several types of rear projection, such as “straight-shot” or “custom mirror bounce,” but rear-projection “cubes” are the most common. Cubes create standard screen diagonals (from 50″ to 80″), with a wide variety of resolutions (XGA, SXGA+, HD, WUXGA), and aspect ratios (4:3, 16:9, 16:10), making design, installation, and serviceability of a display wall easier than ever before. A light engine placed within a cabinet projects an image upward to a mirror where it is bounced toward a screen to produce a visible image. The light engine employs Digital Light Processing™ (DLP). DLP is a type of projection technology trademarked by Texas Instruments that uses a semiconductor chip known as a digital micromirror device (DMD). Millions of tiny 888-activu-1 3 www.activu.com WHITEPAPER mirrors on the DMD move thousands of times per second to create a digital image. Each mirror represents one or more pixels in the projected image. The number of mirrors corresponds to the resolution of the projected image. These mirrors can be repositioned rapidly to refl ect light through the lens. DLP then needs a light source for illumination. Prior to 2010, single or dual (for redundancy) UHP lamps were used; UHP lamps require annual replacement, more power and a color wheel. In 2010, LED was introduced as the new light source for DLP cubes, with a 60,000 to 100,000 hour (6.8 to 11.4 year) life expectancy on the LED light source, depending on the manufacturer.